After breaking the formation, she would go and kill that so-called gentle and helpless tea immortal, who was said to be so kind that, once freed, could incite Brian Clark to raise an army in Yedu. In this way, all the overwhelming sighs and rumors outside would come to an abrupt end.

No one could make a laughingstock of Yedu. No one.

But as Grace Turner cast a cold glance at Adam Harris, while imprisoning Brian Clark, and was about to lead her people into the spatial array to head for Yedu, the entire Yunxiao Hall began to tremble, as if some giant creature had sensed a summons and suddenly rose up from the ground.

Grace Turner's formation began to collapse and disintegrate for no reason, countless silver lights flaking off like old paint, and the untimely heavy snow abruptly stopped at that moment.

Immediately after, the Qiankun Pearl in Grace Turner's sleeve rolled out, tumbling into the small pool of blood at Brian Clark's feet, just as it came into contact with the surging spiritual power unleashed by Adam Harris in a desperate attempt to intervene. A silver-gray whirlwind appeared before the three of them without warning.

It was as if Grace Turner had been pricked in the eye by a needle; she staggered back three steps, her body pressing against a desk. Before her mind and vision went dark, she squinted and seemed to catch a glimpse of a scene from a thousand years ago.

—It was a bitterly cold snowy day, so cold that water would freeze instantly. Dozens of bloodstained, ashen-faced youths were being forcibly pressed to their knees on the judgment platform.

The young Brian Clark was among them.

Author's note:

After a delay, I finally get to meet you all.

This is a story I've really wanted to write. The tone is warm and healing—I hope you like it.

In the early chapters, updates will follow the rankings. For the next two weeks, there may be two or three days without updates due to the rankings (if there's no update after 11 p.m., then there won't be one that day). After V, daily updates will be stable.

Red envelopes for comments on this chapter.

Love you all.

Chapter 2

When Grace Turner woke up, the lingering pain of her limbs being torn still echoed deep in her bones. Propping herself up on her elbows, she warily scanned her surroundings, leaning against a hard pillow, observing without a trace. The events that had just occurred quickly flooded her mind.

When that whirlwind appeared, Brian Clark was already injured, his spiritual power temporarily sealed by the formation on the ice blade, barely able to protect himself, let alone use great magic to reverse the situation. As for Adam Harris, representing Chishui, he would not easily intervene in their conflict; even if he did, it would only be to snatch Brian Clark back from her hands.

So, where was she now? And what was that bizarre whirlwind that appeared out of nowhere?

Before she could figure it out, faint footsteps suddenly sounded outside, moving along the window, stopping at the door, and finally, with a creak, the door was gently pushed open.

Almost by instinct, Grace Turner's fingers twitched, expecting a silent trapping array to appear, but only a few snow-colored threads flashed across her fingertips, like a cluster of flames that flared up and quickly died out.

A hint of astonishment finally appeared on Grace Turner's face, and her expression soon turned a bit grim.

She had fallen from a Heaven-grade Array Master down several ranks to the realm of Grandmaster, and she was injured, her spiritual energy blocked.

Grandmaster—that was a realm she had reached a thousand years ago.

The soft footsteps finally stopped in front of the still crystal curtain, and then a gentle voice sounded: "Your Highness, the appointed time is near. Shall we depart as scheduled?"

Depart? To where?

The person outside the crystal curtain bowed slightly toward the inside, speaking with respectful posture: "The Xihe Holy Land just sent word, saying that there have been strange phenomena in the sky recently, and since the judgment platform is in a special location, after much deliberation, a new rule has been set: only those with identity tokens may accompany us into the Holy Land this time."

"The lord has sent someone again, but the journey is long, and they won't be able to join us for another two days." The woman's voice paused at just the right moment, then asked, "Your Highness, shall we go ahead, or wait until everyone has arrived before setting out?"

Upon hearing the words "judgment platform," Grace Turner got up from the bed, standing barefoot on the thickly carpeted floorboard, her long sleeves hanging naturally like drifting clouds, her expression unchanged, but her gaze held a cold, crystalline indifference.

As the heir to the Holy Land, Grace Turner always had a good memory and keen observation. Logically, in her current situation, even a deity couldn't guarantee recalling anything just from these scattered words.

Yet Grace Turner did manage to find some impressions in her mind.

Because the words "judgment platform" were just that distinctive.

The judgment platform was located in the ancestral land of Xihe, the foremost of the Six Holy Lands, and opened once every fifty to a hundred years. Those pressed onto it were either born evil or prodigious youths who had strayed from the path, all of whom had once committed shocking bloodshed. Any one of their names would send shockwaves. Besides that, without exception, they all possessed enviable talent and intellect. The Heavenly Dao would press them onto the judgment platform, abolish their cultivation under the gaze of countless eyes, to serve as a warning to the world, urging people to abandon evil and embrace good.

But the dead end was not absolute. If any among them caught the eye of a ruler of the Six Holy Lands, they could be spared, but would henceforth wear shackles, serving as slaves within the Holy Land. In many people's eyes, this was called redeeming evil with good.

None of this really had anything to do with her.

The reason Grace Turner remembered it so clearly was because, a thousand years ago, she had brought someone down from the judgment platform.